2020 saw 1,670 pupils dropping out of school, with an even 50/50% split between girls and boys. Most of the students were in their 4th or 5th year, a crucial step in assessing their academic and professional future.
It is also at this age that young candidates can opt for training or an apprenticeship, and it is notable that it is students of DAP classes (about to embark on or already undergoing training) who show the highest dropout rate.
There are many reasons why a student decides to leave school before taking final exams and achieving their diploma, though leaving school early is not seen as the end of the road. The National Youth Service (SNJ) offers an alternative route to all students who would like to return to school, whether it is via a workshop, an internship, an apprenticeship or even returning to the regular school stream.
Thanks to these different possibilities, which also include voluntary service, the SNJ hopes to offer better prospects to these young people for whom the traditional school curriculum may not have been appropriate.
The SNJ regularly receives a list of school dropouts in order to offer them an alternative to the system they have just left, rather than be unaware of the options open to them.
Belval high school, for example, has orientation classes to guide those in search of answers relating to their future.
According to the ministry, the pandemic has not had a significant impact on these figures.
All the details in the report (in Luxembourgish) from RTL Télé Lëtzebuerg:
